baptism of fire

American  

noun

1. spiritual sanctification as a gift of the Holy Ghost.

2. the first time a soldier faces battle.

3. any severe ordeal that tests one's endurance.

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baptism of fire British  

noun

1. a soldier's first experience of battle

2. any initiating ordeal or experience

3. Christianity the penetration of the Holy Ghost into the human spirit to purify, consecrate, and strengthen it, as was believed to have occurred initially at Pentecost

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baptism of fire Idioms  

1. A severe ordeal or test, especially an initial one, as in This audition would be Robert's baptism of fire. This term transfers the original religious rite of baptism, whereby holiness is imparted, to various kinds of ordeal. At first it signified the death of martyrs at the stake, and in 19th-century France it was used for a soldier's first experience of combat. Currently it is used more loosely for any difficult first encounter.

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Etymology

Origin of baptism of fire

First recorded in 1815–25

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

baptism of fire

It was a baptism of fire in a 5-0 defeat, but the player Everton fans would come to love was on show again a few days later.

From BBC ● May 15, 2026

Balfe: It was a bit of a baptism of fire.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 6, 2026

Former midfielder Carrick was installed as boss until the end of the season this week and faces a baptism of fire when Manchester City visit on Saturday.

From Barron's ● Jan. 16, 2026

Prime Minister Borne, a born technocrat rather than a born politician, is having a baptism of fire.

From BBC ● May 23, 2022

A business isn't respectable until it has received its baptism of fire.

From From Sea to Sea Letters of Travel by Rudyard Kipling